This week, Investors will have a fresh set of employment and productivity data to gauge whether the U.S. economy is continuing to contract as recent signs have suggested or powering forward. The U.S. Census Bureau will release February durable goods orders on Tuesday, with expectations for a 1% month-over-month decline, and on Friday the U.S. Labor Department will announce March’s nonfarm payrolls, with expectations for a 225,000-job spike, and the monthly unemployment rate, which is expected to remain at its current 3.6%. A hot jobs market has figured prominently in central bankers’ contemplations about the ongoing strength of the economy, which historically leads to higher inflation readings.
